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Hi there! I am Studyfin, your learning buddy. Let's explore how one word can have two totally different meanings!
Did you know that some words are secret changelings? They look and sound exactly the same, but they change their meaning depending on where they are. We call these multiple-meaning words.
To find the right meaning, we must look at the clues around the word. These clues are called context clues. They live in the same sentence or the sentences nearby.
Let us look at the word 'bat'. In a baseball game, a 'bat' is a wooden stick. In a dark cave, a 'bat' is a furry animal that flies!
✏️ Worked example
Read this sentence: "The hungry dog began to bark at the mail carrier." Use context clues to determine the meaning of the word "bark" in this sentence.
- First, find the target word. The word we are looking at is 'bark'.
- Next, look at the nearby words for clues. I see the words 'hungry dog' and 'mail carrier'.
- Think about what dogs do. Dogs make a loud, sharp sound when they see someone new.
- Think about the other meaning of bark. Bark is also the outer woody layer of a tree trunk. A dog cannot do tree bark to a mail carrier!
- Combine the clues. Since a dog is making a noise at a person, 'bark' in this sentence must mean the sharp cry of a dog.
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